


in the hallways

by TheThirdTemptationOfParis



Category: The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: Established Relationship, M/M, Post Distortion Ritual, canon can't stop me, neither can Jonny Sims
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-12
Updated: 2020-06-12
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:02:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24672031
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheThirdTemptationOfParis/pseuds/TheThirdTemptationOfParis
Summary: Do you know how hard it is to find a Leitner? The entity who is known only as Michael would tell you that it’s like trying to find a specific molecule of water in the ocean. With 978 books in the library of Jurgen Leitner at the time of its destruction, finding just one is near impossible. But he found it. He tracked the book with no title, or the Tome of Many Skins as he had come to call it, all the way across the world to the United States, in the possession of Julia Montauk and Trevor Herbert. Just his luck.Just let them be soft... please...
Relationships: Gerard Keay/Michael Shelley
Comments: 5
Kudos: 36





	in the hallways

Do you know how hard it is to find a Leitner? The entity who is known only as Michael would tell you that it’s like trying to find a specific molecule of water in the ocean. With 978 books in the library of Jurgen Leitner at the time of its destruction, finding just one is near impossible. But he found it. He tracked the book with no title, or the Tome of Many Skins as he had come to call it, all the way across the world to the United States, in the possession of Julia Montauk and Trevor Herbert. Just his luck.

With the powers of the Spiral on his side, he opened a door into the back room of their “safe house” and snagged the book from the table. Once he had the book in his hands, he didn’t quite know what to do with it. He closed the door and retreated into the winding hallways, sinking to the floor, back firmly against the wall. His hands were reverent on the pages as he turned them, not quite prepared to reach the page he needed. 

He didn’t know what would happen when he finally read out what was printed on the page. Gerard might not even remember him, might not want to speak to him, seeing as he’s an embodiment of one of the entities. Michael knew about Gerard’s stint with Gertrude Robinson, knew all about his assistance in stopping later rituals, kept an eye on him as he found his way to the institute, when he eventually… no. Those thoughts were for later. 

Michael took a deep breath and began reading, “His consciousness faded in and out like the tide. He tried to refuse their drugs, though for what purpose even he could not have said. Perhaps he was simply trying to push away…” His pause brought the echo of his words back to his ears. He pushed on. 

“The smell of disinfectant and grief that rose from his hospital bed. She was there sometimes, the one he had followed around the world. There was almost sadness in her eyes. He felt himself begin to slip, the icy certainty of what was happening seeping through his flesh, and as he fell away for the final time, he felt that all consuming fear. And his only thought was to cry out for his mother. But with the last vestige of his stubborn will, he refused. She would not claim his last moment. He was silent. And so, Gerard Keay ended.”

And then Gerry was in front of him. He was older, even somewhat older than he was when Gertrude had put him into this horrendous book. But he wasn’t looking up. “What do you want this time, Julia?”

Michael reached out, just to see if he could hold Gerry again, and to his surprise, his hand cupped his face lightly, “Not Julia, love.”

“Michael…” The disbelief in his voice was nearly palpable, and when Gerry grasped Michael’s wrist and kissed his palm, the world, such as it was, seemed to right itself, “How the hell? How can I feel you? I didn’t think it was possible.”

Michael smirked, “The rules are a little bit different here, I suppose. Or maybe my control over it made it possible. I’m not sure. I’m… how are you, Gerry?”

“So much better now than I was five minutes ago. I… god, Michael how are you? When you didn’t come back I assumed the worst, but I never would’ve thought of this.” His hand never left Michael’s, their fingers interlaced on their touching knees. 

“It’s not that bad, if you can believe it. Better than I could have asked for. Better than the lot you got.”

“Hey, don’t look like that, baby. You’re allowed to be angry with Gertrude for what she did. She kept you in the dark. She _sacrificed you._ ” The anger in Gerry’s voice as he spat the last two words reverberated in Michael’s rib cage. 

“You died of a brain tumor. You’re trapped in a book, Gerry. Being toted around by avatars of the Hunt.” Never, not once, since that fated day on nonexistent Sannikov Land had Michael felt so much like Michael Shelley. 

Gerry laughed without mirth, “Yeah, I am. They use me as some kind of a monster manual. But sweetheart, my death was coming. I knew it, Gertrude knew it. Yours? That wasn’t fair. And even then, I don’t know how this works. It probably wasn’t even anything close to death.”

“It sure as hell felt like one.” 

Gerry rubbed methodical circles on the back of Michael’s hand, “You don’t have to worry about me, love. Sure, being a god forsaken book made of skin isn’t exactly how I pictured my afterlife, it’s not… terrible. It doesn’t hurt. And… my dad was in here at some point.”

Michael looked into Gerry’s eyes, his mouth opening in shock, “Are you sure? How do you know?”

“For one, my mother had this book since she was really young and has been adding to it for as long as I can remember, and on the other end of things, I can feel him. I can feel everyone that has ever been a part of this book, and I assume they can feel me, if their pages hadn’t been burned. And before you ask, I can barely remember anything about my father, but I can remember how he made me feel. It was always… he always loved me. That same energy is in the book. I know it’s him.”

“Is his page still out there? Can you find it?”

Gerry shook his head, “I’ve tried. I can never feel it beyond the remnants in here. I think… I think his page was burned a long time ago.”

“Do you think it was your mother?”

“If I had to hazard a guess. She always despised him, I think. Even in her best moments she never really had a good thing to say. Always said he was too weak for the book. But then I can’t understand why she would put him in just to rip him out.”

Michael cocked his head to the side, a cascade of hair falling over his shoulder, “What’s that look in your eye, dear heart? I’m not sure I like it.” 

Gerry’s grip tightened for a moment, his eyes closing, “Michael, if asked you to rip my page out and burn it, would you?”

“Gerard Keay, I can’t do that! As much as I hate the idea, I have to return you to Montauk and Herbert. And I don’t know if I could bear bringing about a second end for you.”

“Then just rip me out. Take me with you. Show me your hallways, your doors. They won’t notice. They haven’t had the need for me for almost a year. I doubt they’ll need my assistance anytime soon. Please, baby, take me with you.”

“I can’t, Gerard, you know I can’t,” Michael said, unlacing their fingers and reaching up to Gerry’s face again. Gerard, resigned, titled into it, “At least I know you’re safe where you are. I despise the Hunt, but knowing you’re here in some way? It’s a comfort.”

“Can I stay a while longer? I feel like we’ve talked about everything and nothing at the same time.”

“You can stay as long as you like, dear heart. I can make moments feel like forever wishing these walls.”

And with that, Gerard Keay leaned into a form that was familiar yet unrecognizable, a genuine smile on his face for the first time in years.


End file.
